Just started skating again after a year hiatus and 20+ extra pounds. Today is day 5 of skating for 15-30 minutes a day. I spent the first four days rolling around and trying flat ground. Rolling around the park, pumping around, etc.
A couple of pals on here got me stoked to get back into it and it’s been a blessing- ‘preciate you, Slap. The last time I came back from a hiatus, I immediately tried to be where I was a decade prior, which was pretty disappointing and I reverted to doing the same 5 tricks and 4 lines I knew like the back of my hand from years prior. This time, I decided to start from scratch and work through all the basics. It’s going to be a long journey but I feel really good about adding variety to my palette of useless wooden toy dancing.
Days 2,3 and 4, I woke up barely being able to move my legs. Today was the first day I woke up with my legs not pulsating in pain and I was able to lift them with relatively no soreness, which felt really good. I decided I’d start getting back into ledge skating. I’ve been going to my local between 8a-9a to hit it while it’s empty and that has been really fun.
My first day back, I had a really old and wack setup that felt funky. 8” board with super narrow/ tight trucks and gnarly concave. Everything felt weird and unstable. A couple days later, I picked up ishod’s twin tail and it felt really good to roll on- flat, nice width (I’ve never gone above an 8 inch)and felt fun not knowing where my nose or tail were.
I get to the park and roll around the tranny to warm up my legs. Got a little too comfortable on some things and it felt a little sketchy. Then, a mini van full of rad-dad’s kids shows up, so I retreat to the ledge and decide to give it a go.
I was shocked I could regular and switch 5050 with relative ease. I thought I’d do this about 30-40 times and just try to get comfortable. I figured after 5 minutes, I’d move into trying 5-0’s or something else. After 50-50’s for about 15 minutes, I wasn’t getting any more comfortable and felt relatively sketchy on each go. I began to get pretty down on myself, feeling like I couldn’t physically get anywhere near where my mind was at. Shortly after that, I was pretty winded and decided to call it a day.
When I was 19, I fucked my right knee up and I’m pretty sure I stretched or tore my meniscus. Immediately went to the hospital but was only given x-rays and told to rest for a couple weeks. I’m 32 now and this injury has plagued the way I skate. Today, when I got home, I could for sure tell it’s an issue. On top of that, being heavier definitely has not helped it feel much better.
I’m stoked that I’ve gotten back into skateboarding and am relatively passionate about it. Im not stoked on my weight, age and past injuries making me feel like my body is 50. I know I have to persevere, bla bla bla, but it is very frustrating to know where I was and see a long road ahead of me. I’m hoping that recent diet changes and skateboarding daily will quickly improve my agility and lose some pounds to feel odor comfortable on the board. Long term, once I lose some weight, going to get my knee checked out and see if I need surgery.